All Souls (Love Song Part 6)

"Med?" Jared's voice called from the other side of the eerily quiet storm.

I clenched my fists and tried to step again from the circle of roses, but they grew around my legs and I cried out, instead.

"Med, are you all right?" he stepped to the outer edge of thorns and stared at me, surprise opening his face. He scanned the situation, then strode to the fence and leaped over it instead of attempting my entry-point. At a less treacherous-looking area, he stepped across the vines and into the circle. They made no attempt to stop him. "It's quiet," he said.

I growled at him, angry that he'd use the roses to control me, angry at feeling so helpless, furious about Mark.

"Can I help you?" he said. "You look like you're stuck."

Always the dark gentleman, he held out a hand, but I couldn't take it. I could only tremble and slowly, he lowered his arm and gazed to where I silently pointed. He crouched to examine the bramble, and shock moved visibly across his face.

"I'm sorry, Med," he said.

Snarling, I lunged toward him, tearing myself free of the thorns with less force than I'd imagined. Instead of assailing him, I fell against him, and he wrapped his arms tightly around my thrashing shoulders.

"Med, calm down and talk to me. Stop. Stop struggling and calm down."

I was so angry I couldn't speak. He tightened his arms further.

"Let me go," I yelled.

He released me and I fell back, shaking. "I hate you," I said. "Why did you come back?"

He sat carefully across from me on the ground. "I told you, I came back for you."

"I didn't want you to," I said, feeling myself lose control. "You left. I didn't ask for you to come back."

Jared waited as I cried myself to the point I couldn't anymore, and my breaths came out in dry heaves. Then he took his hand and wiped both tears and snot firmly from my cheeks.

"Maybe not," he said, "but I wanted to come back." He stared into my puffy eyes intently, watching my reaction. "But I didn't know about Mark. And I shouldn't have sung the song, except that instinct sang it for me. I'm sorry. I said I can fix it." He nodded toward the roses.

My thoughts felt so muddy. "Do you know what happened after you left?"

"Tell me."

"Scat died. Again." I motioned to the stone by the bushes. "You weren't here to bring him back. And I was okay with that because I knew it wasn't fair to ask you. You can do these crazy miracles but that doesn't mean they're right. What if Scat had family waiting there for him? Or an infinite supply of mice? What determined that I needed him more?"

"I did," he said quietly.

"It's like in the sci-fi books only real. Those crazy sorcerers can bring people back from the dead but the consequences are always disastrous."

"Was Scat's life cursed after I brought him back?" Jared asked.

I shook my head. "But it was disastrous for me. I learned how to hope for things that I shouldn't. When Mom got sick, I knew you'd bring over cookies and make her better. But you didn't. She had cancer." The tears welled up again and I thrust them aside with my palm. "She got better anyway, but it hurt everyone, really bad. And when Scat died, I swore to myself that I wouldn't rely on miracles anymore, that I could live without them." My voice fell to a whisper. "Live without you."

Jared nodded. "So what about Mark, then?"

I barked bitterly and pounded my fist into the dirt, too tired to do anything else. "That's where the I-hate-you part comes in."

Pain deeper than I'd seen filled his countenance. "I can tell. I'll go."

I laughed and waved my hand. "Not yet, hippopotamus. Heal him, first."

Instantly, the roses began to pull away from their prize. The vines fell back into themselves and within moments, the brambles that encircled us had disintegrated into a fraction of their selves. Jared's eyes narrowed, watching them, but I crawled immediately toward Mark.

I couldn't touch him. Instead, I closed my eyes and smiled.

___

Nearly there... :) --Elm

All Knowledge (Love Song Part 5)

The roses formed a semi-circle in the back corner of the yard where the fence didn't join because my mom couldn't bear to cut down the trees. She'd planted the bushes to keep the neighbor kids out of her garden, but they didn't stop me from making my own garden beyond them of moss, stones, and cicada shells... and cat posies.

Today, the roses seemed to have another plan. Sometime between this morning and now, the thorned vines had crawled into a complete circle, and a great, snarled mass of them that I couldn't quite comprehend hid the entrance to the woodsy back trail.

I did understand one thing. "Don't you think you're making this a bit obvious?" I yelled into the whirlwind. "If you're trying to keep me from finding Mark and lock me into your spell, you're going about it the wrong way."

I cursed as I stepped over a thinner looking section and the roses gathered around my legs. Then I stiffened as I heard a moan that was as unnatural as the vines it had come from.

I stepped back into the circle, searching for the source of the noise, fighting my instinct to run. Mom's roses had always protected me from the scary noises of the forest--they were my gateway to safety. But running was silly now. I was effectively fenced in, and Jared's challenge was scarier than any strange noise.

Even if it did come from inside the mountainous, rosy tangle. I crept closer, peering into the shadows.

I put my hand over my mouth and screamed.

Eyes stared out at me. But they couldn't see me. Vines had sprouted thorns that dug deep into the irises and whites. The skin around them was streaked pale and red from the needles that pierced the forehead, cheeks, and lips. The horrible mound covered and engaged the entire length of his body.

The eyes that twinkled, the lips that kissed so sweetly, they were pierced by my mother's roses.

I bit down on my knuckles, trying to still the screams and shudders that overtook me. I yelled strangled words to convey the traitor Jared was, to use what wasn't his to win his battle. Then I dropped to my knees and began to pull at the snarl. The thorns shredded my skin--they didn't let off for any kindnesses Jared might have woven into his song. But I didn't care. All I knew was that I had to reach the center of this monstrosity.

For every vine I yanked back, another tightened around Mark, and finally, I paused as I watched another wave of thorns lance his skin. I leaned into the bush and let my fingers touch his forehead.

"How did this happen?" I whispered. I slid my fingertips to his cheek. I couldn't touch his eyes.

"Med," Mark groaned.

"I'm here," I said.

"The roses..."

"I know. I'm going to get help."

911 would bring medics, but they wouldn't bring help. They'd hack at the bushes and rush him to hospice and lace him with antiseptic and IVs... but they wouldn't be able to return his sight. I could call my dad and mom--both of whom were helping with the neighborhood celebration--but by deep instinct, I knew they would be drawn into the challenge if I included them. I couldn't let that happen, too. The only help I could think of was Jared.

Jared, who healed everything he touched.

Jared, who got everything he wanted.

Jared, who created this predicament.

And why would he want to heal Mark, his competition? I'd never seen my friend cause outright pain or destruction, but two years was a lot of time to change. Less than five minutes ago, he'd spoken about wars fought over mythological beauties as though their consequences didn't matter. That wasn't the Jared I knew.

He'd sung the song. He'd destroyed my parents' backyard. He'd killed--blinded--my boyfriend.

What I couldn't imagine was how he would think that I could ever, ever want to look at him again, when this was what he was capable of doing.

"I'm going to get help," I said again to Mark, pulling away. He didn't reply and I bit my lip as I stared at him, trying to tell if he was still breathing, willing him to keep trying. The eyes...

I stepped to the edge of the roses. I screamed as loudly as I could the name of the only help I could guarantee.

I needed Jared, but I also hated him.

___

Hi everyone! Thanks for being patient while I was out, and I hope you're enjoying the last dregs of winter, because despite the snow, Spring is on her way. :) This story is Part 5 out of 8. If you want links to the other sections, go here to last week's intermission where I posted them clear and easy. And if you want more fun flash fiction, I'm participating in Suzanne Warr's Flash Friday blog hop, so run over to her place and click on the links there. Enjoy! --Elm

Intermission

I'm on vacation but out of breath in Park City, Utah--among skiing and four kids and large extended families with birthdays and baby showers, this week's Love Song installment is on hold. Please forgive me, I will be back on target next week! And if you missed last week's chapter, catch up on Med, Jared and Mark here.

Part 1: Love Song

Part 2: All Winds

Part 3: All Desires

Part 4: All Forces

Parts 5-8 coming quickly... :)

--Elm

All Forces (Love Song Part 4)

"What do you mean, that was me? I don't have any part in this," I cried.

"We're inside the challenge, Med. You were supposed to tell him and not look back."

I stared at the boy in front of me. Suddenly, he felt like a stranger. "How am I supposed to know the rules of your dumb game, Jared? Mark is getting hurt out there, we have to help him."

He shrugged, and a smile cracked his lips. "He stepped up to the bat. If you read the poetry, epic battles have been fought over women for millennia, whether they like it or not."

"That's not funny," I said, and I pulled the door open. The storm wrenched it from my hands and stole at my lungs. The pages of the books behind me added their flutter to the chaos.

The entire backyard was gone. We were in the middle of a funnel of roaring wind, the treehouse at the eye, the remaining scenery--house, garden, lawn--vanished behind a wall of swirling debris.

I felt Jared grab at my waist to pull me back inside, but I wrenched myself from his grip and stepped determinedly out the door to the edge of the platform. The ladder had been ripped away but I'd grown since I needed it. Covering my mouth with the skirt of my dress so I could breathe, I jumped from the edge.

I crawled awkwardly, as quickly as I could toward the house. The wind whipped at my streaming eyes and the debris ripped at my skin. Mark had to be fighting at the opposite side of the storm. I couldn't hear his voice anymore, but I had to get him away before this challenge of Jared's hurt him, or worse, killed him.

What a stupid game. I wasn't worth this kind of destruction. That kind of irresponsibility was meant for fairy tales.

Dad would be furious about the yard.

The wind pushed at me ferociously, and instead of bumping into the porch lattice, my mom's rose bushes loomed in my face.

The rose bushes....

Before the thorns could catch me, I flattened myself to the ground and pulled myself through the tiny opening beneath the branches.

In this alcove, no wind blew. It was my other haven, the place I came to after I couldn't go to the treehouse. The reason? I'd buried my cat here the second time he died. A large stone marked the location of his bones and fur, and two years of dried posies decorated the stone, lying undisturbed except for a new one I hadn't placed there.

A bouquet of purple daisies, tied with a blade of grass.

I stared around but I couldn't see Mark.

I brought him here, once, to show him. I knew he wouldn't truly understand because I'd never told him about Jared or the cat's life after life. He'd watched me as I placed the flowers on the grave, though, and wiped at my silly tears with his thumb. And then he took me to the park and twisted us up on the swing, with me on his lap, until the chains creaked, and let go. By the end of the day, I didn't need to go back to my cat. He could finally rest in peace.

Mark had connected the dots. He'd known exactly where to lay his token in the fight.

A stillness filled me, as completely as if the storm had never touched me, as I remembered my promise to myself.

All I had to do was get us all out of this ridiculous battle alive.

___

Hope you're enjoying the story :). Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3 are here if you'd like a refresher. As always, take a look at Suzanne Warr's blog hop for more flash fiction.